Picks contest purely professional

As a bookmaker, Tony Miller spends little to no time listening to touts. But he does pay close attention to big bettors, those who do more talking with their money than their mouth.

That’s one reason he runs the football handicapping contest with the largest entry fee in Las Vegas.

The Friday Football Showdown, presented by the Golden Nugget sports book in association with the Las Vegas Review-Journal and ESPN Radio (1100 AM, 98.9 FM), requires contestants to post a $3,000 entry fee.

Sixteen professional handicappers will duel over the next 15 weeks in the $50,000 contest.

“What I like most about this contest is it gives the public a chance to see some of the top handicappers in the world and their best bets every week,” said Miller, the Golden Nugget book director.

Two handicappers go head to head each Friday, revealing their best bets on “The Las Vegas Sportsline” radio show from 2 to 3 p.m. The weekly selections also will be posted on Reviewjournal.com and Espn1100.com.

Each handicapper makes seven selections against the spread, from all college and NFL sides and totals posted on the Golden Nugget board at noon Fridays. The seventh selection — designated as the Best Bet — is the first tiebreaker.

The winners of the eight first-round head-to-head matchups each receive $1,000 but are not guaranteed to advance, as the eight contestants with the highest winning percentages on seven plays advance. Beginning with the second round, when eight contestants remain, the winner of each matchup moves on in a true bracket format. Second-round winners also receive $1,000.

The Golden Nugget added $2,000 to the prize pool. The winner earns $30,000, with second place collecting $8,000.

The Westgate Las Vegas SuperContest, which requires a $1,500 entry fee, is king of the contest market. It is an NFL-only handicapping challenge, and it has surpassed 1,200 entries this year with a prize pool approaching $2 million.

While the SuperContest attracts several amatuer hopefuls, the Friday Football Showdown is a field of mostly big-name pros. Paul Stone, a Texas-based handicapper for Sportsmemo.com, was last year’s winner at the Golden Nugget. He eliminated former bookmaker Richie Baccellieri, who went 12-2 ATS in his two appearances.

“I’m making Richie the favorite,” Miller said.

The field consists of 15 men and one woman. Kelly Stewart, a professional handicapper from Las Vegas, is looking to knock off the big boys.

“Kelly adds some spice to it,” Miller said. “I give her a good chance. She knows her stuff.”

A blind draw determined the following first-round schedule for the Friday Football Showdown:

■ Today, Richie Baccellieri vs. Frank Betti: A former top oddsmaker at Caesars Palace and the Palms, Baccellieri is a member of “The Linemakers” on SportingNews.com. Betti is a longtime professional bettor affiliated with LasVegas Advisor.com.

■ Sept. 12, Al McMordie vs. Chuck McDowell: One of the nation’s top technical handicappers, McMordie (BigAl.com) won the Stardust Invitational in 2004. McDowell, who started in the handicapping industry in 1982, is a professional bettor from Nashville, Tenn.

■ Sept. 19, Chuck Edel/Ken Thomson vs. Scott Pritchard: Edel and Thomson form a team entry from SportsXradio.com and Pregame.com. Pritchard, the runner-up in last year’s Friday Football Showdown, has been a professional bettor for more than 30 years.

■ Sept. 26, Sam Cahoe vs. Ron Boyles: A professional bettor from Portland, Ore., Cahoe’s primary focus is college football. Boyles has been recognized as one of the sharpest professional players in Las Vegas since the 1980s.

■ Oct. 3, Caesar Espinosa vs. Bryan Leonard: Espinosa won the William Hill College Pick’em contest last year. Leonard, a longtime Las Vegas handicapper who owns Footballwinners.com, finished second in the 2011 and 2012 Cantor Football Showdown.

■ Oct. 10, Erin Rynning vs. Paul Stone: The winner of the 2006 Leroy’s Money Talks Invitational, Rynning is a major college football and NFL bettor and a handicapper at Sportsmemo.com. Stone, who has won two Las Vegas contests, specializes in college football and is also a member of Sportsmemo.com.

■ Oct. 17, Scott Kellen vs. Kelly Stewart: The 2011 winner of the Cantor Football Showdown, Kellen (SixthSenseSports.com) has earned a reputation as one of the nation’s top NFL handicappers. Stewart (Kellyinvegas.com) has made several national media appearances and works part-time for the Review-Journal.

■ Oct. 24, Cris Zeniuk/Frank Perez vs. Marco D’Angelo: Zeniuk and Perez teamed to win the 2011 $100,000 Wynn Survivor contest and 2011 Palms NFL contest. D’Angelo (WagerTalk.com) is in his 35th season as a professional handicapper.

Contact reporter Matt Youmans at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. Follow him on Twitter: @mattyoumans247.